


Sure, why not?

by bunnysworld



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Competition, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-24
Updated: 2017-06-24
Packaged: 2018-11-18 09:20:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11288328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bunnysworld/pseuds/bunnysworld
Summary: It’s all the Coach’s fault. But they would show those sissies that they were the best, right?





	Sure, why not?

Arthur sighed. This was ridiculous. Why would they have to waste their Saturday afternoon with something like this just because Coach let what that instructor said get to him all the time? 

He tossed his sport bag down with more force than necessary and was pleased when it made so much noise that some of the others stopped what they were doing and looked over. 

“Cut it out already, Arthur.” Percy put his bag down, too, and looked around, a careful smile on his face.

“This is ridiculous and you know it.” Arthur’s face clearly showed what he thought about the whole thing.

Sighing, Gwaine came over. “I hate that he took our Saturday from us for this little competition.”

“They’re no match for us. Let’s do this, so we can be out of here as soon as possible.” When he noticed that some of the girls were looking over, he pulled his hoodie over his head, just to show off.

Percy shook his head. “I wouldn’t be so quick to judge, Arthur. They’re fit as hell.”

“Perce…Percy, my man…” Arthur reached up and pulled Percy’s face close by a hand in his neck. “Look at them. They are girls, little ballet dancers, ballerinas. WE are the football team.” He let go. 

Rubbing the back of his neck, Percy said nothing for a moment and then looked into the direction Gwaine was staring in. “What are you…oh.” They weren’t all girls, there was a boy, too. He was about their age and if he judged it correctly over the distance, about as tall as Arthur. 

“What?” Arthur looked, too. They had the guts to bring in a bloke! He was probably just the token male so the girls wouldn’t be so intimidated by the football team. Arthur was convinced the guy was all stiff and he was so skinny that he sure wasn’t fit enough to go through with this. But he was also kind of gorgeous with his sticking out ears, dark hair and blue eyes that cheerfully twinkled at them. The spandex stuff he was wearing left nothing to the imagination and Arthur absent-mindedly licked his lower lip.

“Arthur…” Gwaine nudged him. “The competition first, the come-on later.”

Percy laughed when Arthur threw Gwaine a dark look and they went over to where Coach signalled them to assemble.

The ballet instructor, a petite female with dark hair that she wore in a very tight bun on top of her head, greeted them. “As you all know, Coach Kilgharrah was under the impression that we are not fit enough to go through with their little warm-up routine.” She threw first the Coach and then the football team an amused smile. “So this is how it goes. We will do their routine first,” she told her ballet students and then turned to the football team, “and if the gentlemen still have enough stamina, we will add our own before we will do some of our training.”

Arthur’s eyebrow rose. As if they weren’t fit enough to go through with their own warm-up routine! They did it all the time! Usually wearing their full gear or at least the shoulder pads as additional weight! If she was worried about someone, she should be worried about those skinny little girls and the bloke that hovered in the back of the group. With a smirk, he went to find his space between Gwaine and Percy and waited for Coach to start their routine. 

After about ten minutes, he had worked up a good sweat, as always. But this was what the warm-up was all about. He felt his muscles respond the way they should and loved every second of it. Carefully, he threw a look over to the ballet girls and accidentally caught the bloke looking over. No, he wasn’t just looking over, he was smiling at him and he looked fresh as spring morning. While all his team mates were sweating and breathing hard, the ballet folks all looked like they hadn’t really started yet. 

When Coach was done yelling orders at them another then minutes later, Arthur was ready for a sip of water and a little break. He had worked extra hard but it showed. Percy was grinning at him as he wiped the sweat off his forehead and Gwaine plucked at his sweaty t-shirt. 

A quick check showed that the ballet girls were at least breathing hard, some of them slightly sweating, but none of them in the same state as the guys on the team were. 

When the ballet instructor took over, training got a lot more exhausting. They weren’t used to stretching and bending and whatnots, so one after the other dropped out and even though Arthur tried to go through with everything, he knew he wouldn’t make it to the end if it took longer. Finally, he fell backwards and just kept lying on the floor. Fuck, they had failed. Those damn ballet people had beaten them! This was embarrassing! 

All of a sudden, a head with dark hair and blue eyes showed up in his field of vision. “You okay?”

Arthur nodded, took the offered hand and let the bloke pull him up. “Yeah,” he was still breathing hard. 

“You should drink some water, we don’t want you to pass out.” 

“Thanks.” Arthur accepted the water bottle the bloke held out to him. “And…congrats, I think.”

The chuckle ran down Arthur’s spine. “Thank you. It must be difficult to admit defeat.” The guy winked. 

Arthur scratched at his neck. “Yeah…it’s not something we are used to doing.”

“Maybe I can help you get over it?” 

“What do you mean?” The guy smiled shyly at him, but Arthur was confused.

“Well…you need a bit more than this one bottle of water to rehydrate, so…maybe…there’s a little diner at the corner…”

The guy asked him on a date? Arthur’s mood lifted right away. He nodded. “Sure, why not?”

It stung that he couldn’t prove that he was the fittest, but the day already looked a lot better.


End file.
